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Standing in the basement dining room of a West Loop Greek restaurant Sunday afternoon, Mayor Rahm Emanuel accepted the endorsement of one of his chief antagonists -- former mayoral candidate and outgoing 2nd Ward Ald. Bob Fioretti. "For me, the candidate is Rahm, and on Election Day, I will be casting my vote for Rahm Emanuel as mayor of our city," Fioretti said in delivering his endorsement. "And if you're worried about the financial health of this city, you should do the same. We need not only our financial health of our city to be fixed, but the budget for CPS and you only have one choice." In showcasing Fioretti's support, Emanuel acknowledged the...

About 200 Chicago schoolteachers, wearing the red T-shirts their union has embraced as a symbol of solidarity against Mayor Rahm Emanuel, gathered in a Pilsen union hall recently for a workshop that doubled as a political rally.
"The whole country...

Rahm Emanuel and Jesus "Chuy" Garcia clashed in an argumentative second debate Thursday night, a face-to-face meeting in which the challenger tried to put the mayor on the defensive by mocking his leadership of Chicago.
With early voting...

Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis on Thursday made her first public appearance of the runoff election with the candidate she recruited to challenge Mayor Rahm Emanuel when a cancer diagnosis forced her out of the contest.
Cook County...

Standing in front of an upright piano in a large, wood-floored living room, challenger Jesus "Chuy" Garcia told several dozen campaign donors seated in folding chairs that he would put an end to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's "corporate...

Who I am
Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis from the South Side of Chicago.
One unique thing about me
My mother read to me every single night. I equated reading with love, imagination and a way to experience a completely different life.
I...

Friday was supposed to be Chuy's Big Day.
Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, the man who forced Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to defend himself in an April 7 runoff election, had promised to release his fiscal blueprint. With scarcely three weeks left in the...

Re-election battles typically are referendums on the incumbent, one reason Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia framed his Chicago mayoral candidacy as a reaction to perceived shortcomings in the style and performance of Rahm Emanuel.
...

President Barack Obama delivered a pre-election bouquet to Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Thursday, backing his friend's bid for a second term as he announced national monument status for the Pullman historic district, a key site in America's labor and civil...

Mayoral challenger Bob Fioretti stood in the kitchen of a South Side firehouse on a recent morning and explained to a small group of firefighters and paramedics why he would be a better steward of their interests than Rahm Emanuel.
Take pension benefits,...

Chicago Public Schools faces gaping budget deficits, skyrocketing retirement costs and tough negotiations for a new teachers contract, but the candidates for mayor have offered few solutions on how they'd deal with some of the gravest financial challenges...

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and three challengers met for the first televised forum of the campaign Wednesday, but it was a controversy involving a debate set for Thursday that dominated the day's news.
ABC-Ch. 7, the League of Women Voters and Univision, which...

Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis pilloried Gov. Bruce Rauner on Monday and promised the CTU would not back down from Springfield or City Hall as it prepares demands for a new contract.
"Bruce Rauner ran on a platform about nothing,"...

Karen Lewis strode a few paces from her Merchandise Mart office to a conference room with downtown views, clad in a royal blue skirt and head wrap that contrasted with a pair of Chicago Teachers Union red high-tops.
She was ready to talk about her...

Chicago Public Schools are set to defy a mandate to launch a standardized exam districtwide this spring, despite the potential for sanctions that could include some loss of federal funding.
The district said it will administer the Partnership for...

Dear Karen Lewis,
Just between you and us:
Remember your last visit with the Tribune Editorial Board, on May 7? You were full of pepper and vinegar. You said that "on a scale of 1 to 10," your Chicago Teachers Union would deliver a...

If you're Jesus "Chuy" Garcia and you're running for mayor, this is how you take down Mayor Rahm Emanuel:
You and the other candidates in the race get just enough votes to deny Rahm the 50 percent-plus-one vote count he'll need to win...

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has raked in another $533,000 for his re-election run, almost all of it thanks to the fact that the state's campaign contribution limits don't apply to the mayor's race.Much of Emanuel's latest campaign haul, reported to state...

Chicago mayoral candidate Jesus "Chuy" Garcia campaigned with African-American supporters on Tuesday, releasing a list of backers heavy on union leaders and community organizers and light on elected officials.
To unseat Mayor Rahm Emanuel,...

Four years ago, recently departed White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel chose the crowded gymnasium of a North Side elementary school to formally kick off what he'd been building up to for weeks: a run for mayor of Chicago.
The venue, John C. Coonley...